Fears are growing that Stockport families could be left "starving" after delays to the council's voucher support scheme.

Some struggling households in the borough receive family support vouchers to help pay for essentials such as energy bills and school uniforms, but people use the payment to buy food too.

The vouchers are given to those with children who receive free school meals, local council tax support, or housing benefit, and can be exchanged for £105 in cash for each eligible child at post offices.

But residents have told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that they have not received their email vouchers for the period up to September 30 – and that there could be "hundreds" of others in the same situation.

It has sparked concerns that families may go hungry if the delay is not resolved soon.

Stockport town centre (Image - Nub News)

Nicola, 43, from Offerton, has not received her voucher, and said the council is asking worried residents to fill in a form and wait 14 days for a response.

She said: "We've not been able to find one person who received these vouchers by email.

"Everyone I've spoken to says they don't have them, and they've checked their spam inbox but it's not there either. People are really worried about it.

"People can use it for whatever they want, things like school uniforms, fuel, and food. I'm worried people won't be able to feed their children because of this.

"It's a lot of money and it would go very far for a family. No one [at the council] seems to be taking any responsibility for it, we're being fobbed off and people could be starving in 14 days, but I don't think they see it as a problem."

(Image - Alexander Greensmith)

Another resident said: "There are hundreds of stockport residents who haven't received them, and families are struggling."

A number of comments have been made on the council's Facebook page, with some residents claiming they have not received their vouchers and have been waiting for more than a week for a response from the town hall.

Stockport council responded with a comment stating: "We're aware that there are delays in sending out vouchers.

"Please ensure you trust emails from the Post Office Payout system by accepting emails from [email protected].

"If you have not yet received all the vouchers you're entitled to, please wait until Monday 12 August 2024 before contacting us.

"The date with which you can redeem your voucher will be amended to be 30 days from receipt in your inbox. Thank you for your patience."

A Stockport council spokesperson said: "We are working hard with our partners at the Post Office Payout system to ensure all eligible families receive their support vouchers.

"So far over half of the 15,000 vouchers have been redeemed and we are continuing to work tirelessly to ensure all our families receive the support they need as soon as possible."

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